Methods and devices for multi-level data protection in a storage system

ABSTRACT

A method and apparatus for multi-level data protection in a storage system. The storage system comprises a first storage device, a second storage device, and a third storage device, the method comprising: establishing a synchronous replication session between the first storage device and the second storage device so as to synchronously replicate data in the first storage device to the second storage device; establishing an asynchronous replication session between the first storage device and the third storage device so as to asynchronously replicate the data in the first storage device to the third storage device; and recovering the asynchronous replication by establishing an asynchronous replication session between the second storage device and the third storage device in response to a failure of the first storage device.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/382,830, filed on Dec. 19, 2016, entitled “METHODS AND DEVICES FORMULTI-LEVEL DATA PROTECTION IN A STORAGE SYSTEM”, which claim priorityfrom Chinese Patent Application Number CN201510983346.2, filed on Dec.24, 2015 at the State Intellectual Property Office, China, titled“METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MULTI-LEVEL DATA PROTECTION IN STORAGESYSTEMS,” the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference inits entirety.

FIELD

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a data storage system,and more specifically relate to methods and devices for multi-level dataprotection.

BACKGROUND

In a data storage system, a plurality of copies of data may be storedsimultaneously so as to enhance security and availability of the data.For example, data may be replicated from one storage device to anotherstorage device through a mirror view technology. Currently, datareplication may be performed through synchronous replication orasynchronous replication.

Synchronous replication refers to a technology of generating, by anetwork attached storage (NAS), a plurality of synchronous data copiesin a local area network (LAN) or wide area network (WAN) via blockreplication technique. An advantage of synchronous replication is smalltime delay of data synchronous protection and a 0 recovery pointobjective (RPO). Therefore, a disaster event occurring at a productiondata center may not result in data loss; however, it can only workwithin a relative short distance (e.g., 10 KM). Therefore, synchronousreplication is suitable for applications with a low recovery timeobjective (RTO).

Compared with synchronous replication, with the technique ofasynchronous replication, there is a longer time delay before data isreplicated to a secondary site. The asynchronous replication can supporta longer distance, e.g., 100 KM.

Therefore, the synchronous replication and asynchronous replication havetheir own advantages and disadvantages and are applicable to differentscenarios. In current storage systems, there have been no technicalsolutions to support co-existence of synchronous replication andasynchronous replication.

SUMMARY

In order to improve data protection, embodiments of the presentdisclosure provide a method and apparatus for data protection in astorage system.

Hereinafter, an overview of respective embodiments will be given toprovide basic understanding on some aspects of various embodiments. Theoverview is not intended to identify main points of key elements ordescribe scope of various embodiments. Its only purpose is to presentsome concepts in a simplified way as a prelude for subsequent moredetailed depiction.

A first aspect of the present disclosure provides a method formulti-level data protection in a storage system, the storage systemcomprising a first storage device, a second storage device, and a thirdstorage device, the method comprising: establishing a synchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the secondstorage device for synchronously replicating data in the first storagedevice to the second storage device; establishing an asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device for asynchronously replicating the data in the firststorage device to the third storage device; and recovering theasynchronous replication by establishing an asynchronous replicationsession between the second storage device and the third storage devicein response to a failure of the first storage device.

In one embodiment, synchronously replicating data in the first storagedevice to the second storage device may comprise: synchronizinginformation in the first storage device about the asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device to the second storage device; and the method furthercomprises: clearing, from the second storage device, part of informationabout the asynchronous replication session between the first storagedevice and the third storage device before establishing the asynchronousreplication session between the second storage device and the thirdstorage device.

In another embodiment, the clearing, from the second storage device,part of information about the asynchronous replication session betweenthe first storage device and the third storage device may comprise:identifying a session signature of the asynchronous replication sessionbetween the first storage device and the third storage device from thedata synchronously replicated to the second storage device, andclearing, from the second storage device, information about theasynchronous replication session indicated by the session identifier. Ina further embodiment, the session signature may include a sessionidentifier and a file system identifier, and clearing, from the secondstorage device, information about the asynchronous replication sessionindicated by the session identifier may comprise: clearing, from thesecond storage device, information about the asynchronous replicationsession indicated by the session identifier if the fie system identifierincluded in the session signature matches an internal file systemcheckpoint identifier in a control path database that is imported fromthe first storage device into the second storage device.

In one embodiment, synchronizing information in the first storage deviceabout the asynchronous replication session between the first storagedevice and the third storage device to the second storage device maycomprise: synchronizing the information in the first storage deviceabout the asynchronous replication session between the first storagedevice and the third storage device as part of data to the secondstorage device; or synchronizing the information in the first storagedevice about the asynchronous replication session between the firststorage device and the third storage device as part of an internal filesystem checkpoint to the second storage device.

In another embodiment, establishing an asynchronous replication sessionbetween the second storage device and the third storage device maycomprise: loading a file system to the second storage device; andestablishing a file system-level asynchronous replication sessionbetween the second storage device and the third storage device.

In one embodiment, the method may further comprise: performing failoverby exchanging roles of the first storage device and the second storagedevice during the synchronous replication session, in response to afailure of the first storage device; and during recovery of the firststorage device from the failure, clearing control path databaseinformation related to the synchronous replication session from thefirst storage device and updating a configuration file of the firststorage device so as to ensure that a file system loading process afterreboot of the first storage device will not cause a rolling reboot ofthe system due to file system mismatch. In another embodiment, updatingthe configuration file of the first storage device may comprise:modifying a loading item of a file system in an existing configurationfile.

A second aspect of the present disclosure provided an apparatus formulti-level data protection in a storage system, the storage systemcomprising a first storage device, a second storage device, and a thirdstorage device, the apparatus comprising: a synchronous replication unitconfigured to establish a synchronous replication session between thefirst storage device and the second storage device for synchronouslyreplicating data in the first storage device to the second storagedevice; an asynchronous replication unit configured to establish anasynchronous replication session between the first storage device andthe third storage device for asynchronously replicating data in thefirst storage device to the third storage device; and an asynchronousreplication recovering unit configured to recover the asynchronousreplication by establishing an asynchronous replication session betweenthe second storage device and the third storage device in response to afailure of the first storage device.

In one embodiment, the synchronous replication unit may be furtherconfigured to: synchronize information in the first storage device aboutthe asynchronous replication session between the first storage deviceand the third storage device to the second storage device; and theapparatus may further comprise: a first clearing unit configured toclear, from the second storage device, part of information about theasynchronous replication session between the first storage device andthe third storage device before establishing the asynchronousreplication session between the second storage device and the thirdstorage device.

In another embodiment, the first clearing unit may further comprise: anidentifying unit configured to identify a session signature of theasynchronous replication session between the first storage device andthe third storage device from the data synchronously replicated to thesecond storage device, and an information clearing unit configured toclear, from the second storage device, information about theasynchronous replication session indicated by the session identifier. Ina further embodiment, the session signature may include a sessionidentifier and a file system identifier, and the information clearingunit may be further configured to: clear, from the second storagedevice, information about the asynchronous replication session indicatedby the session identifier if the fie system identifier included in thesession signature matches an internal file system checkpoint identifierin a control path database that is imported from the first storagedevice into the second storage device.

In another embodiment, the synchronous replication unit is furtherconfigured to synchronize information in the first storage device aboutthe asynchronous replication session between the first storage deviceand the third storage device to the second storage device by one of:synchronizing the information in the first storage device about theasynchronous replication session between the first storage device andthe third storage device as part of data to the second storage device;or synchronizing the information in the first storage device about theasynchronous replication session between the first storage device andthe third storage device as part of an internal file system checkpointto the second storage device.

In a further embodiment, the asynchronous replication unit is furtherconfigured to establish an asynchronous replication session between thesecond storage device and the third storage device by one of: loading afile system to the second storage device; and establishing a filesystem-level asynchronous replication session between the second storagedevice and the third storage device.

In one embodiment, the apparatus may further comprise: a failover unitconfigured to perform failover by exchanging roles of the first storagedevice and the second storage device in the synchronous replicationsession, in response to a failure of the first storage device; and anfile updating unit configured to, during recovery of the first storagedevice, clear control path database information related to thesynchronous replication session from the first storage device and updatea configuration file of the first storage device so as to guarantee thata file system loading process after reboot of the first storage devicewill not cause a rolling reboot of the system due to file systemmismatch. In another embodiment, the file updating unit may beconfigured to update the configuration file of the first storage deviceby modifying a loading item of a file system in an existingconfiguration file.

A third aspect of the present disclosure provides an apparatus, theapparatus comprising at least one processor; and at least one memoryincluding computer program code, wherein the at least one memory and thecomputer program code are configured to, with the at least oneprocessor, cause the apparatus to perform the method according to thefirst aspect of the present disclosure.

By virtue of the methods or apparatus of the embodiments of the presentdisclosure, synchronous and asynchronous replication technologies may besimultaneously utilized to provide local and remote multi-level dataprotection.

Although specific embodiments have been illustrated by way of example inthe accompanying drawings, it should be understood that the descriptionof the particular embodiments is not intended to limit the embodimentsto the specific form being disclosed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The objectives, advantages and other features of the present disclosurewill become more apparent from the disclosure below and the claims.Here, non-limiting depiction of the example embodiments will be providedfor illustration purposes only, with reference to the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a flow chart of a method for multi-level dataprotection in a storage system according to embodiments of the presentdisclosure;

FIGS. 2a-2b illustrate schematic diagrams of data protection beforefailure of the first storage device and during the failure; and

FIG. 3 illustrates an example structural diagram of an apparatusaccording to embodiments of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

In the description below, many details are depicted for the purpose ofillustration. However, a person of normal skill in the art willappreciate that embodiments of the present disclosure may be implementedwithout using these specific details. Therefore, the present disclosureis not intended to be limited to the embodiments illustrated, but willbe granted a broadest scope consistent with the principle and featuredescribed herein.

It should be understood that the terms “first” and “second” are onlyused to distinguish one element from another element. Actually, thefirst element can also be referred to as the second element, and viceversa. In addition, it should also be understood that the expressions“comprise,” “comprising,” “include” and “including” are only used toillustrate presence of features, elements, functions or components asstated, but do not exclude presence of one or more other features,elements, functions or components.

In order to facilitate explanation, some embodiments of the presentdisclosure will introduce a corresponding method or apparatus using theVNX2 product of the EMC™ Company as an example. However, those skilledin the art can understand that the embodiments of the present disclosureare in no way limited to being applied to the VNX2 product only, but maybe applied to any storage system having a similar problem.

As previously mentioned, there is no solution that enables co-existenceof synchronous replication and asynchronous replication in the priorart. For example, in the VNX2 storage product, a replicator V2 (abbr.Repv2) may be provided for asynchronous replication, or a virtual datamover (abbr. VDM) for synchronous replication.

In order to enable coexistence of the synchronous replication andasynchronous replication so as to leverage the advantages of both, manyproblems should be addressed, e.g., how to enable cooperation betweenthe synchronous replication and asynchronous replication in a storagesystem, and how to recover the session upon failure, etc.

In order to address at least some of the above problems, embodiments ofthe present disclosure provide a method for multi-level data protectionin a storage system. FIG. 1 illustrates an example flow chart of themethod 100. The storage system comprises a first storage device, asecond storage device, and a third storage device, wherein the storagesystem may be, but not limited to, a VNX2 storage system, and thestorage device therein may be (but not limited to) a storage array.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the method 100 comprises: establishing asynchronous replication session between a first storage device and asecond storage device at S101, for synchronously replicating data in thefirst storage device to the second storage device; this means the datain the first storage device can be replicated to the second storagedevice with a low delay; at S102, establishing an asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device for asynchronously replicating the data in the firststorage device to the third storage device; due to a relatively largetime delay of the asynchronous replication, this means that informationof the first storage device as saved in the third storage device mightnot be the latest; at S103, recovering the asynchronous replication byestablishing an asynchronous replication session between the secondstorage device and the third storage device in response to a failure ofthe first storage device.

FIGS. 2a-2b schematically illustrate a schematic diagram of dataprotection before and during the failure of a storage system using themethod 100.

Through this method, local and remote dual-level data protection, e.g.,file protection, is provided in the storage system. As can be understoodby those skilled in the art, the method may also be applied to a storagesystem with more storage devices. Through this method, a mechanism forcooperating between synchronous replication and asynchronous replicationis provided; moreover, in response to a failure of the first storagedevice, data of the first device as saved in the second storage devicemay be asynchronously replicated to the third storage device.

In one embodiment, at block S103, establishing an asynchronousreplication session between the second storage device and the thirddevice in response to a failure of the first storage device maycomprise: loading/mounting a file system to the second storage device;and establishing a file system-level asynchronous replication sessionbetween the second storage device and the third storage device.

Currently, there is no solution that simultaneously leveragessynchronous replication and asynchronous replication like the method100. With the traditional VNX2 product as an example, due to at leastsome of the following reasons, it cannot support coexistence ofsynchronous replication and asynchronous replication:

1. In traditional VNX2, a VDN that enables synchronous replicationcannot create a file system (FS)-level asynchronous replication Repv2session. If a synchronous replication is established between the storagedevice A and the storage device B, while an asynchronous replication isestablished between the storage device A and the storage device C isestablished at the same time, if the storage device A fails, thesynchronous replication will perform failover from the storage device Ato the storage device B. This causes that the file system data of theVDM will be synchronized to the storage device B side, and a networkattach storage database (NASDB) will be imported from a NASDB replicacontrol logic unit (Control LUN). However, because information from thestorage device A about the asynchronous replication session (Repv2)between device A and device C exists in the data path database (e.g.,save volume) of the storage device B, the film system will be unable tobe loaded in the VDM of the storage device B.

2. In this case, the FS Repv2 synchronized from the storage device A isbroken; moreover, the Repv2 cannot be deleted through a traditionalnas_replicate command, because the synchronous replication feature(Syncrep) only failover the VDM data to the storage device B. The VDMdata includes a VDM root file system and a user file system, but doesnot include a root file system of an operating system DART. Therefore,in the storage device B, the database NameDB in the root file system ofDART has not stored the Repv2 session information.

3. After the Syncrep failover occurs, the original source storage device(i.e., A) is recovered from the failure. At this point, because thestorage device A is in a standby state after failover, its LUN block isin a read-only state, and then during the device reboot procedure,loading/mounting the file system to the LUN block will fail and cause arolling reboot of the system.

Optionally, in order to implement the local and remote dual-level dataprotection using an existing storage device (e.g., VNX2), in someembodiments, at block S101 of the method 100, the information in thefirst storage device about the asynchronous replication session betweenthe first storage device and the third storage device (e.g., Repv2information) may also be synchronized to the second storage device. Inthese embodiments, the method 100 may further comprise: at block S104,before establishing an asynchronous replication session between thesecond storage device and the third storage device, clearing part ofinformation about the synchronous replication session between the firststorage device and the third storage device from the second storagedevice. This embodiment can delete, by force, the information in thesecond storage device which is adverse to establishing an asynchronoussession between the second device and the third device.

In one embodiment, at block S101, the information in the first storagedevice about the asynchronous replication session between the firststorage device and the third storage device may be synchronized to thesecond storage device as part of data; or synchronized to the secondstorage device as part of an internal file system checkpoint.

In another embodiment, when implementing the method using the VNX2storage product described above, in order to load a file system in theVDM of the second storage device, at block S104, information about theasynchronous replication session between the first and third storagedevices that obstructs file loading may be cleared from the seconddevice. However, the remaining information that does not obstructloading of file system, may be retained. The information that is deletedby force may be, for example, information about the broken Repv2 betweenthe first and third storage device which cannot be deleted through atraditional nas_replicate command.

As can be understood by those skilled in the art, the informationcleared at S104 may be different dependent on different storage systemsto which the method is applied, and for some storage systems, theclearing operation may not be needed.

In another embodiment, clearing the information about the asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device from the second storage device at block S104 maycomprise: identifying a session signature of the asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device in the data synchronously replicated to the secondstorage device, and clearing, from the second storage device, theinformation about the asynchronous replication session indicated by thesession signature.

In another embodiment, the session signature may comprise a sessionidentifier (Session ID) and a file system identifier (FS ID); and atblock S104, if the FS ID included in the session signature matches aninternal file system checkpoint FS ID in a control path database (e.g.,network attach system database NASDB) imported from the first storagedevice into the second storage device, clearing, from the second storagedevice, the information about the asynchronous replication sessionindicated by the session identifier. For another example, by matchingthe information stored in a save volume of the second storage device tothe information stored in the NASDB of the control station in the secondstorage device and calculating a correct DART, a broken Repv2 is deletedusing the DART with an appropriate parameter. After deleting the Repv2,the file system may be loaded into the VDM of the second storage deviceso as to continue to provide data services.

As can be understood by those skilled in the art, in another embodiment,the information cleared from the second storage device may also beindicated by other identifier, e.g., a connection ID, a target addressID, etc.

In one embodiment, the method 100 may also comprise: at block S105, inresponse to a failure of the first storage device, failover is performedby exchanging roles of the first storage device and the second storagedevice during a synchronous replication session. For example, roleexchanging may include replicating data in the second storage device tothe first storage device during the synchronous replication session. Asan example, the failover may include switching the first storage devicefrom an active state to a standby state, and meanwhile switching thesecond storage device from the standby state to the active state.

At block S106, during recovery of the first storage device, control pathdatabase information related to the synchronous replication session iscleared from the first storage device, and a configuration file of thefirst storage device is updated. This facilitates ensuring that filesystem loading process after reboot of the first storage device will notcause rolling reboot of the system due to file system mismatch. In oneembodiment, the configuration files of the first storage device may beupdated by modifying a loading item of a file system in an existingconfiguration file.

As mentioned above, without the method 100 of the present disclosure,after failover of the first storage device, once the first storagedevice is recovered from the failure, rolling reboot might occur if thefirst storage device attempts to load the file system after reboot. Thisis because the first storage device is in a standby state afterfailover, and its LUN block is in a read-only state. However, becauseits VDM is loaded with the file system, and then performing a writeoperation of loading file system after reboot will trigger anotherreboot. However, using some embodiments of the method 100 of the presentdisclosure, the problem may be solved by clearing a file system NASDBentry related to the synchronous session from the control station of thefirst storage device without interconnecting with the DART. The controlstation may build a new configuration file (e.g., boot.cfg), e.g.,building a new configuration file by modifying a load item of a filesystem in an existing configuration file; in this way, after the DART isrebooted, the file system can be loaded based on the new configurationfile, thereby avoiding rolling reboot.

Hereinafter, a structure of the apparatus 300 for multi-level dataprotection in the storage system will be described with reference toFIG. 3. The storage system to which the apparatus 300 is applicablecomprises a plurality of storage devices, e.g., a first storage device,a second storage device, and a third storage device. For example, thestorage system may be (but not limited to) a VNX2 system. The apparatus300 may perform the method 100 described with reference to FIG. 1, butnot limited to the method 100. Likewise, the method 100 may be executedby the apparatus 300, but not limited to being executed by the apparatus300. For example, at least some operations of the method 100 may beexecuted by other apparatus.

In one embodiment, the apparatus 300 comprises a synchronous replicationunit 301 configured to establish a synchronous replication sessionbetween the first storage device and the second storage device so as tosynchronously replicate the data in the first storage device to thesecond storage device; an asynchronous replication unit 302 configuredto establish an asynchronous replication session between the firststorage device and the third storage device so as to asynchronouslyreplicate the data in the first storage device to the third storagedevice; and an asynchronous replication recovery unit 303 configured toestablish an asynchronous replication session between the second storagedevice and the third storage device in response to a failure of thefirst storage device, so as to recover the asynchronous replication.

In one embodiment, units 301-303 may be configured to perform operationsS101-S103 of the method 100 with reference to FIG. 1. Therefore,relevant depiction provided with reference to the method 100 is alsoapplicable here.

In one embodiment, the synchronous replication unit 301 is furtherconfigured to also synchronize the information in the first storagedevice about the asynchronous replication session between the firststorage device and the third storage device to the second storagedevice; and the apparatus 300 may further comprise: a first clearingunit 304 configured to clear part of information about the asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device from the second storage device, before establishing anasynchronous replication session between the second storage device andthe third storage device.

In one embodiment, an operation of the block S104 described withreference to the method 100 is also applicable here to the firstclearing unit 304, and therefore will not be detailed here.

In another embodiment, the first clearing unit may further comprise: anidentifying unit 3041 configured to identify a session signature of theasynchronous replication session between the first storage device andthe third storage device from the data synchronously replicated to thesecond storage device, and an information clearing unit 3042 configuredto clear, from the second storage device, the information about theasynchronous replication session indicated by the session signature.

In a further embodiment, the session signature may comprise a sessionidentifier and a file system identifier, and the information clearingunit 3042 may be further configured to clear, from the second storagedevice, the information about the asynchronous replication session asindicated by the session identifier, if the file system identifierincluded in the session signature matches an internal file systemcheckpoint identifier in a control path database imported from the firststorage device into the second storage device.

As an example, the synchronous replication unit 301 may be furtherconfigured to synchronize information in the first storage device aboutthe asynchronous replication session between the first storage deviceand the third storage device to the second storage device through one ofthe following manners: synchronizing the information in the firststorage device about the asynchronous replication session between thefirst storage device and the third storage device as part of data to thesecond storage device; or synchronizing the information in the firststorage device about the asynchronous replication session between thefirst storage device and the third storage device as part of an internalfile system checkpoint to the second storage device.

As a further embodiment, the asynchronous replication unit is furtherconfigured to establish an asynchronous replication session between thesecond storage device and the third storage device through one of thefollowing manners: loading a file system to the second storage device;and establishing a file system-level asynchronous replication sessionbetween the second storage device and the third storage device.

Additionally or alternatively, the apparatus 300 may comprise a failoverunit 305 configured to perform failover by exchanging roles of the firststorage device and the second storage device during the synchronousreplication session in response to a failure of the first storagedevice; and a file updating unit 306 configured to, during recovery ofthe first storage device, clear control path database informationrelated to the synchronous replication session from the first storagedevice and update a configuration file of the first storage device, soas to guarantee that a file system loading process after reboot of thefirst storage device will not cause rolling reboot of the system due tofile system mismatch.

In one embodiment, the file updating unit may be configured to updatethe configuration file of the first storage device by modifying aloading item of a file system in an existing configuration file.

In one embodiment, operations of the blocks S105-S106 described withreference to the method 100 are also applicable here to the units 305and 306, and therefore will not be detailed here.

As can be understood by those skilled in the art, the apparatus 300 mayalso comprise other units not shown in FIG. 3; and in some embodiments,some units in FIG. 3 may be omitted.

Before providing the method and apparatus according to the embodimentsof the present disclosure, there were no solutions for local and remotemulti-level data protection in the storage system. For example, dataprotection performed using VNX Repv 2 is asynchronous, and if disasteroccurs, data lost might occur at the target storage device side. Fordata protected by VNX synchronously replication, VDM, it is subject to adistance limitation (e.g., 40 km). Therefore, it can only recover fromfailure such as power down in a lab. However, if a large-scale disasterlike earthquake or flood occurs, two storage device sites might bothsuffer the disaster due to short distance there-between, such that bothstorage devices cannot work, causing interruption of data service.

With method and apparatus of embodiments of the present disclosure,coexistence of local and remote replications, e.g., co-existence of thesynchronous replication and asynchronous replication in the VNX, can beenabled. This not only enables real-time data protection, but alsoenables data protection within a distance of hundreds of kilometers.According to some embodiments, a synchronous replication sessiontechnology can be utilized during the recovery of asynchronousreplication, so as to avoid the initial replication phase and shortenthe recovery time. With some embodiments, an integrated solution thatenables both file-level and block-level data protection can be provided.

Through the method and/or apparatus according to some embodiments of thepresent disclosure, the user can create a synchronous session for theVDM, and create a Repv2 session for the file system loaded in the VDM.

Through the method and/or apparatus according to some embodiments of thepresent disclosure, the storage system can provide failover for VDMsynchronous replication if disaster occurs, and resume the FSasynchronous replication session after failover, thereby providing localand remote multi-level data protection.

Those skilled in the art will easily appreciate that the blocks or stepsin various methods above may be executed through a programmed computer.In the present disclosure, some embodiments are also intended to cover aprogram storage system, e.g., a digital data storage medium. It storesan instruction program that is readable by a machine or a computer andexecutable by an encoding machine or computer, wherein the instructionexecutes some or all steps of the method above. The program storagesystem may be, for example, a digital memory, a magnetic storage mediumsuch as a magnetic disk or magnetic tape, a hard disk driver or anoptical readable digital data storage medium. The embodiment is alsointended to cover a computer programmed to execute steps of the methodabove. Some embodiments are also intended to cover an apparatus thatcomprises at least one processor; and at least one memory includingcomputer program codes, wherein the at least one memory and the computerprogram codes are configured to, with the at least one processor, causethe apparatus to execute the method 100.

Functions of various elements of the apparatus illustrated in thedrawings may be provided through software, dedicated hardware, andhardware associated with appropriate software and capable of executingthe software, or firmware or a combination thereof. If provided by theprocessor, the function may be provided by a single dedicated processor,a single shared processor, or a plurality of separate processors.Besides, the terms “processor” may comprise, but not limited to, adigital signal processor (DSP) hardware, a network processor, anapplication specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmablegate array (FPGA), a read-only memory (ROM) for storing software, arandom-access memory (RAM), and a non-volatile storage device. It mayalso comprise other conventional and/or customized hardware.

Those skilled in the art should understand that the specification anddrawings are only for illustrating the principle of the embodiments ofthe present disclosure. Therefore, it should be appreciated that thoseskilled in the art can design various arrangements which, though notexplicitly described or illustrated, embody the principle of theembodiments of the present disclosure and are included within the spiritand scope of the embodiments of the present disclosure. Besides, all theexamples recited herein are mainly used for the teaching purpose to aidreaders in understanding the principles of the present disclosure andthe concepts contributed by the inventor and to further the presentfield, and it should be construed as not being restricted to thespecifically recited examples and conditions. Besides, all theillustration and the specific embodiments of the principles, aspects andembodiments of the present disclosure also intend to cover thecounterparts thereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for multi-level data protection in astorage system, the storage system including a first storage device, asecond storage device, and a third storage device, the methodcomprising: establishing a synchronous replication session between thefirst storage device and the second storage device for synchronouslyreplicating data in the first storage device to the second storagedevice, wherein the synchronously replicating data in the first storagedevice to the second storage device comprises synchronizing informationin the first storage device about the asynchronous replication sessionbetween the first storage device and the third storage device to thesecond storage device; establishing an asynchronous replication sessionbetween the first storage device and the third storage device forasynchronously replicating the data in the first storage device to thethird storage device; clearing, from the second storage device, part ofinformation about the asynchronous replication session between the firststorage device and the third storage device before establishing theasynchronous replication session between the second storage device andthe third storage device, wherein the clearing, from the second storagedevice, part of the information about the asynchronous replicationsession between the first storage device and the third storage devicecomprises: identifying a session signature of the asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device from data synchronously replicated to the second storagedevice, and clearing, from the second storage device, information aboutthe asynchronous replication session indicated by the session signature,wherein the session signature includes a session identifier and a filesystem identifier, and clearing, from the second storage device, theinformation about the asynchronous replication session indicated by thesession identifier, if the file system identifier included in thesession signature matches an internal file system checkpoint identifierin a control path database synchronously replicated from the firststorage device into the second storage device; and in response to afailure of the first storage device, recovering the asynchronouslyreplicating by establishing an asynchronous replication session betweenthe second storage device and the third storage device.
 2. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the synchronizing the information in thefirst storage device about the asynchronous replication session betweenthe first storage device and the third storage device to the secondstorage device comprises: synchronizing the information in the firststorage device about the asynchronous replication session between thefirst storage device and the third storage device as part of data to thesecond storage device.
 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein thesynchronizing the information in the first storage device about theasynchronous replication session between the first storage device andthe third storage device to the second storage device comprises:synchronizing the information in the first storage device about theasynchronous replication session between the first storage device andthe third storage device as part of an internal file system checkpointto the second storage device.
 4. The method according to claim 1,wherein the establishing an asynchronous replication session between thesecond storage device and the third storage device comprises: loading afile system to the second storage device; and establishing a filesystem-level asynchronous replication session between the second storagedevice and the third storage device.
 5. An apparatus for multi-leveldata protection in a storage system, the storage system including afirst storage device, a second storage device, and a third storagedevice, the apparatus, including one or more processors and one or morememories configured to perform operations, comprising: establishing asynchronous replication session between the first storage device and thesecond storage device for synchronously replicating data in the firststorage device to the second storage device, wherein the synchronouslyreplicating data in the first storage device to the second storagedevice comprises synchronizing information in the first storage deviceabout the asynchronous replication session between the first storagedevice and the third storage device to the second storage device;establishing an asynchronous replication session between the firststorage device and the third storage device for asynchronouslyreplicating the data in the first storage device to the third storagedevice; clearing, from the second storage device, part of informationabout the asynchronous replication session between the first storagedevice and the third storage device before establishing the asynchronousreplication session between the second storage device and the thirdstorage device, wherein the clearing, from the second storage device,part of the information about the asynchronous replication sessionbetween the first storage device and the third storage device comprises:identifying a session signature of the asynchronous replication sessionbetween the first storage device and the third storage device from datasynchronously replicated to the second storage device, and clearing,from the second storage device, information about the asynchronousreplication session indicated by the session signature, wherein thesession signature includes a session identifier and a file systemidentifier, and clearing, from the second storage device, theinformation about the asynchronous replication session indicated by thesession identifier, if the file system identifier included in thesession signature matches an internal file system checkpoint identifierin a control path database synchronously replicated from the firststorage device into the second storage device; and in response to afailure of the first storage device, recovering the asynchronousreplication by establishing an asynchronous replication session betweenthe second storage device and the third storage device.
 6. The apparatusaccording to claim 5, wherein the operations further comprise:synchronizing the information in the first storage device about theasynchronous replication session between the first storage device andthe third storage device to the second storage device by: synchronizingthe information in the first storage device about the asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device as part of data to the second storage device.
 7. Theapparatus according to claim 5, wherein the operations further comprise:synchronizing the information in the first storage device about theasynchronous replication session between the first storage device andthe third storage device to the second storage device by: synchronizingthe information in the first storage device about the asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device as part of an internal file system checkpoint to thesecond storage device.
 8. The apparatus according to claim 5, whereinthe operations further comprise: establishing an asynchronousreplication session between the second storage device and the thirdstorage device by: loading a file system to the second storage device:and establishing a file system-level asynchronous replication sessionbetween the second storage device and the third storage device.
 9. Acomputer program product for providing multi-level data protection in astorage system, the storage system including a first storage device, asecond storage device, and a third storage device, the computer programproduct comprising: a non-transitory computer readable medium encodedwith computer-executable code, the code configured to enable theexecution of: establishing a synchronous replication session between thefirst storage device and the second storage device for synchronouslyreplicating data in the first storage device to the second storagedevice, wherein the synchronously replicating data in the first storagedevice to the second storage device comprises synchronizing informationin the first storage device about the asynchronous replication sessionbetween the first storage device and the third storage device to thesecond storage device; establishing an asynchronous replication sessionbetween the first storage device and the third storage device forasynchronously replicating the data in the first storage device to thethird storage device; clearing, from the second storage device, part ofinformation about the asynchronous replication session between the firststorage device and the third storage device before establishing theasynchronous replication session between the second storage device andthe third storage device, wherein the clearing, from the second storagedevice, part of the information about the asynchronous replicationsession between the first storage device and the third storage devicecomprises: identifying a session signature of the asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device from data synchronously replicated to the second storagedevice, and clearing, from the second storage device, information aboutthe asynchronous replication session indicated by the session signature,wherein the session signature includes a session identifier and a filesystem identifier, and clearing, from the second storage device, theinformation about the asynchronous replication session indicated by thesession identifier, if the file system identifier included in thesession signature matches an internal file system checkpoint identifierin a control path database synchronously replicated from the firststorage device into the second storage device; and in response to afailure of the first storage device, recovering the asynchronouslyreplicating by establishing an asynchronous replication session betweenthe second storage device and the third storage device.
 10. The computerprogram product according to claim 9, wherein the synchronizing theinformation in the first storage device about the asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device to the second storage device comprises: synchronizing theinformation in the first storage device about the asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device as part of data to the second storage device.
 11. Thecomputer program product according to claim 9, wherein the synchronizingthe information in the first storage device about the asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device to the second storage device comprises: synchronizing theinformation in the first storage device about the asynchronousreplication session between the first storage device and the thirdstorage device as part of an internal file system checkpoint to thesecond storage device.
 12. The computer program product according toclaim 9, wherein the code is further configured to enable the executionof: establishing an asynchronous replication session between the secondstorage device and the third storage device by: loading a file system tothe second storage device: and establishing a file system-levelasynchronous replication session between the second storage device andthe third storage device.